Device for generating and/or processing navigational information

ABSTRACT

A device for generating and/or processing navigating data. The device having access to first location data, a first point and a second point being derivable with the aid of location data, navigational data being able to be generated and/or being processable for the points, and the second locations data being necessary for deriving the second point.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a device for generating and/orprocessing navigating data.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Devices for generating and/or processing navigating data include adatabase of a road network in the form of a digital map. Such devicesperform position finding functions and/or navigating functions on such adatabase, for instance, for a motor vehicle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The device according to the present invention may perform positionfinding functions and/or navigating functions using target points, i.e.geographical points which are not available in the database to which thedevice has access as a standard matter. The present invention mayprovide a broadening of the database in the form of second location datamade available to the device. The second location data supplementing thefirst location data, for instance, by making available to the deviceadditional geographical points or additional objects includinggeographical points, particularly POI's (points of interest) or entiremap sections. It is only by the second location data that it is madepossible for the device according to the present invention to usegeographical points in a navigating task, which in the database, i.e.the first location data, were not regarded as being navigable.

The first location data may be a database which includes a road networkat least partially. Thus, the present invention may be used even forfirst location data including road networks.

The second location data may be a broadening of the database. Thereby,due to the interplay of the first location data and the second locationdata, points may be navigably linked which, with regard to the firstlocation data are either not present in the database at all or, if theyare present, are not usable for navigation.

The second location data may include objects of any desired complexity.Thereby the device according to the present invention is very flexiblewith respect to the second location data which supplement the firstlocation data. In particular, it is provided according to the presentinvention, to provide individual geographical points, whole traverses,i.e. sequences of geographical points, or even complete networks ofgeographical points, i.e. parts of maps, as second location data.

The first storage arrangement may be allocated to the device, and thatthe second location data are storable in the first storage arrangement.Thereby it is possible that the second location data are available inthe device according to the present invention for any desired duration,for generating and/or processing navigating data. A renewed transmissionof the second location data to the device according to the presentinvention therefore becomes superfluous, which reduces effort, cost anda possible restriction of the operating readiness of the device.

Moreover, the second point may be a point of entry into the sub-range ofthe road network represented by the first location data and/or an exitpoint from the sub-range of the road network represented by the firstlocation data. Thereby is yielded a clear interface between the firstand the second location data.

Furthermore, the second point may be used as intermediate target pointfor performing a navigation and/or a position finding. Thereby pointsbecome navigably linkable which, just on account of the database of thefirst location data, do not have this property.

After performing the navigation and/or position finding to the secondpoint, a navigation and/or a position finding to a target point isperformed. This makes possible a navigation and/or position findingbetween any points of the first and second location data.

The second location data (34) may represent at least the sectiontraveled in the navigation and/or position finding between the secondpoint and the target point. Thereby it is made possible only by thesecond location data to perform a navigation and/or a position findingbetween the second point and the target point.

The device may be associated with a man-machine interface, and that thereaching of the second point is able to be signaled at the man-machineinterface. Thereby it is possible for a user of the device according tothe present invention to comprehend the reaching of the interfacebetween the first location data and the second location data.

The second storage arrangement may be allocated to the device, and thatthe first location data are storable in the second storage arrangement.This makes it possible for the device according to the present inventionto receive a faster access to the first location data, which contributesto a faster processing and, going along with that, a greater comfortlevel of using the device according to the present invention.

In addition, the first location data and/or the second location data maybe transmitted to the device in a wireless and/or wire-bound manner.Thus, the device according to the present invention is also usableindependent of storage media in which data are stored in anon-changeable form, such as CD-ROM data carriers or the like. The datafile to which the device according to the present invention has accessmay thus be constantly held current.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an example of a road network including a target point.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a representation of the road network in FIG.1 in first and second location data.

FIG. 3 shows the common representation of first and second location dataas representation of the road network.

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of the device according to the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows an example of a road network 30, with the aid of which adevice 10 according to the present invention, further described in FIG.4, and its functioning procedure. Road network 30 includes a targetpoint 31, which is provided as a terminal point of a navigation functionin the example embodiment. Instead of navigation, in the following, theconcept of routing or navigation function is also used.

In FIG. 2, first location data 32 and second location data 34 are shownin the form of sequences of points or in the form of networks of points.The first and the second location data 32, 34 together represent roadnetwork 30 of FIG. 1. In the example embodiment it is assumed that firstlocation data 32 is a part of a database which road network 30 includesat least partially. The database is also denoted as digital map below.First location data 32 include the database or rather, the part of roadnetwork 30 representing it, in any desired form, such as in the form oftraverses which are connected to one another at points of connection, orin the form of closed or open loops. Second location data 34 alsoinclude a representation of a sub-range of road network 30, firstlocation data 32 and second location data 34, taken together,representing the entire road network 30 relevant to the exampleembodiment. In the example embodiment described, the circumstances arethat second location data 34 include target point 31, which lies outsideroad network 30 represented by first location data 32.

The digital map is shown in FIG. 3, and it comes about when firstlocation data 32 and second location data 34 of the example embodimentare viewed in common. The entire road network 30, shown in FIG. 1 andrelevant to the example embodiment, is then represented by location data32; 34.

In FIG. 2 as well as in FIG. 3 points, especially geographical points,which are part of first location data 32 or part of second location data34 are shown as symbols that are close to being circular. The points offirst location data 32 and of second location data 34 are summarized astraverses in FIGS. 2 and 3. In each case, neighboring points on atraverse are connected by so-called edges, the edges in the drawingsbeing shown as continuous or broken lines. In this context, traversesmay cross one another, crossover points being able to be created whichare a part of each of the crossing traverses, in general, in each caseas points. Thus, first location data 32 may be regarded as digitalrepresentations of a sub-range of road network 30 in the form oftraverses not described here. The edges of the first traverse of firstlocation data 32 are shown as dotted lines in the example embodiment.The edges of the second traverse of first location data 32 are shown asdot-dash lines in the example embodiment. The edges of the thirdtraverse of first location data 32 are shown as shorter dash lines inthe example embodiment. The edges of the fourth traverse of firstlocation data 32 are shown as longer dash lines in the exampleembodiment. The edges of the traverses of first location data 32 areshown in each case in non-bold lines. The second location data 34include only one single traverse in the example embodiment, whose pointsand edges are shown in each case in bold lines.

It may be seen in FIG. 3 that second location data 34 partially overlapfirst location data 32. This is the case for a sub-range of the firsttraverse and the second traverse of first location data 32. Betweentarget point 31 of second location data 34 and the overlapping range oflocation data 32, 34, first location data 32 and second location data 34do not overlap. Due to the fact that first and second location data 32,34 partially overlap and partially do not overlap, a second point 35 isdefined which marks the transition between the overlapping range offirst and second location data 32, 34 and the non-overlapping range oflocation data 32, 34. In the example embodiment, second point 35 is nota point of first location data 32, but lies on an edge between twopoints of the second traverse of first location data 32. Second point 35is linked in a navigable manner into the representation of road network30 only by the supplementation of first location data 32 by secondlocation data 34, and the fact that second location data 34 includesecond point 35 not only as a part of an edge, but also as a point. Inthis connection, the qualification as navigable for a point means that,for such a point, navigating data are able to be created and/or are ableto be processed. However, by the supplementation of first location data32 by second location data 34, not only second point 35 becomesnavigable but also target point 31.

Thus, a device 10 according to the present invention makes it possiblethat a database, to which device 10 has access, is supplemented in sucha manner by second location data 34 that any points or map sections notincluded in the database, i.e. first location data 32, may be linkedinto the database in a navigable manner by second location data 34.

A device 10 according to the present invention is especially configuredas a telematic terminal 10 or a navigation unit 10. Such units mayinclude, or render access to their own database in the form of a digitalmap. In this context, such a database may be provided both in the formof the content of a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, and in the form ofa central database in a data processing system of a service provider. Indevice 10 according to the present invention, or telematic unit 10according to the present invention or navigation unit 10, the databasein the form of first location data 32 may be supplemented or broadenedby second location data 34 in the form of objects to be newlyadditionally loaded.

FIG. 4 shows the device according to the present invention as a blockdiagram. In this context, device 10 includes a control unit 20, which isconnected to a first memory 14 as first storage arrangement 14, a secondmemory 16 as second storage arrangement 16 and a man-machine interface18, respectively. Device 10 optionally includes a send/receive unit 12for wireless or wire-bound data transmission. In second storagearrangement 16 first location data 32 are stored, in an exampleembodiment. Second location data 34 are stored in first storagearrangement 14. If a send/receive unit 12 is present, second locationdata 34 may be read in or broadened or modified, with the aid of awire-bound or wireless transmission. For this purpose, send/receive unit12 receives the changing or the supplementing data, and control unit 20coordinates their storage in first storage arrangement 14. The secondlocation data 34 may also be input to first storage arrangement 14,using a storage medium such as an updated CD-ROM. In the same manner,several possibilities come about for storing first location data 32 insecond storage arrangement 16, for example, via send/receive unit 12 or,for instance, by inputting using storage media, or even by fixedhardware-type prestorage of a database in second storage arrangement 16.In this context, first and second storage arrangement 14, 16, dependingon configuration, are provided as read-only memory, write-read memory involatile or nonvolatile execution. The first and second storagearrangements 14, 16, in particular, may also be combined.

Device 10 communicates with a user with the aid of man-machine interface18. In this connection, man-machine interface 18 may also be configuredas an additional unit, such as an automobile radio, and device 10according to the present invention only makes available the interface tothe man-machine interface. For the execution of a navigating function,control unit 20 of device 10 according to the present invention linksfirst location data 32 to second location data 34, in order, forexample, to navigate the user to target point 31. To do this, controlunit 20 naturally also processes the signals of sensors that are notshown, such as GPS sensors, acceleration sensors, milage sensor and moreof the like. If, for example, at the beginning of the execution of thenavigating function, the user is located at one of the end points of thesecond traverse of first location data 32 of the example embodiment, andhe wants to navigate to target point 31, device 10 would automaticallynavigate the user first to second point 35, so as subsequently toprocess the partial traverse to target point 31. With respect to thesub-range of road network 30 represented by first location data 32,second point 35 is an exit point of such a navigating task: from secondpoint 35 on, until target point 31, the user moves exclusively on pointsand traverses of second location data 34. If the navigating task werethe opposite, that is, from target point 31 to get to an end point ofthe second traverse of first location data 32, second point 35 couldcorrespondingly also be denoted as an entry point. In each case,however, second point 35 is utilized as the intermediate target for theguidance system or rather the navigation. Similarly, for positionfinding there is the possibility of utilizing second point 35 as theintermediate target. This makes second point 35 a navigably linkedtransition point between the originally present first location data 32and the supplementing second location data 34.

This makes it possible, on the basis of conventional functionalities ofautonomous navigating systems, to make available navigating deviceswhich are provided for a dynamized navigation. Typical applications are:

-   -   navigating to a POI (point of interest) delivered by a service        provider,    -   supplementing sparsely drawn own maps by detailed map fragments        obtained from a network or a data carrier,    -   Fitting together map parts in edge areas and/or overlapping        areas, e.g. in network-supported navigating systems,    -   transition between map parts without their completely fitting        together at all possible transitional points.

An scenario for the example embodiment described is that target point 31denotes, for instance, a parking garage positioned inside a buildingcomplex and having its own drive. The own drive to the parking garage isnot contained in the navigational database available to navigatingdevice 10, by which, first of all, from the point of view of navigatingdevice 10 it may not be controlled. From a service provider who is inpossession of detailed (current) map material, at the request of theuser of device 10 according to the present invention, information is nowsent to this parking garage which corresponds to a request to secondlocation data 34. Second location data 34 are fitted into the availabledatabase (first location data 32), especially with the aid of a mapmatching process. In this connection, second point 35 is defined astransitional point between first and the second location data 32, 34.Second point 35 is to be regarded as an intermediate target in order tonavigate from any desired point of the “known” road network, that is,from any point of first location data 32 to target point 31. Thisintermediate target is used as the end point for the route calculationon the database originally present in the unit, that is, first locationdata 32. Upon reaching this intermediate target, position finding ornavigating is continued by the part of road network 30 newly linked bysecond location data 34, until target point (31) (the parking garage) isreached.

According to the present invention, it is particularly provided that thetransition between first location data 32 and second location data 34,i.e. the reaching of second point 35, is notified to the user viaman-machine interface 18, particularly optically or acoustically. Thismay be used especially to ensure protection from misuse or faulty dataquality on the part of the supplier of first location data 32.

1. A device for at least one of generating and processing navigatingdata, comprising: an arrangement for accessing first location data; anarrangement accessing second location data, the second location databeing processable by the device; an arrangement for deriving a firstpoint and a second point in accordance with the first location data andthe second location data, and an arrangement for at least one ofgenerating and processing navigational data for the first point and thesecond point, wherein: the first point and the second point are not partof the first location data, and the first location data and the secondlocation data are linked, whereby at least one of the first point andthe second point is navigably linked to the first location data.
 2. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein the first location data are stored in adatabase that includes a road network at least partially.
 3. The deviceof claim 2, wherein the second location data are a broadening of thedatabase.
 4. The device of claim 2, wherein the second point includes atleast one of: a point of entry into a sub-range of the road networkrepresented by the first location data, and an exit point from thesub-range of the road network represented by the first location data. 5.The device of claim 1, wherein the second location data include objectsof any degree of complexity.
 6. The device of claim 1, furthercomprising: a first storage arrangement for storing the second locationdata.
 7. The device of claim 6, further comprising: a second storagearrangement for storing the first location data.
 8. The device of claim1, wherein the second point is used as an intermediate target point forperforming at least one of a navigation finding and a position finding.9. The device of claim 8, wherein after performing at least one of thenavigation finding and the position finding, at least one of a secondnavigation finding and a second position finding to a target point isperformed.
 10. The device of claim 9, wherein the second location datarepresent at least a section traveled in the at least one of thenavigation finding and the position finding between the second point andthe target point.
 11. The device of claim 1, wherein the device isassociated with a man-machine interface and arrival at the second pointis able to be signaled at the man-machine interface.
 12. The device ofclaim 1, wherein at least one of the first location data and the secondlocation data is transmittable to the device in at least one of awireless manner and a wire-bound manner.